Box Score

BLUEFIELD, Va. – In a slower-than-usual game for the Bluefield College men's basketball team, the Rams defeated (RV) Campbellsville University 54-45 on Saturday afternoon in the Dome Gymnasium, as the team wrapped up the regular season and celebrated Senior Day.
 
Seniors Alex Lubsey, Kearsten Marion, Josh Nesbit and Nick Stathopoulos were all honored prior to the game.

It was also a special occasion as the 1998-99 men's basketball team returned to celebrate their postseason accolade from 15 years ago. Playing in the NAIA National Tournament, the squad knocked off the No. 3 seed Southern Oregon and is the only men's basketball team to secure a victory in the national tournament.

Bluefield (15-11, 8-10 MSC) was led by Josh Nesbit's 16 points, while Andrew Wilson and Alex Lubsey chipped in 12 and 10 points, respectively.
 
No Tiger was able to break into double figures, with A'Darius Pegues and Darius Clement tallying nine points apiece.
 
Lubsey, Nesbit and CU's Demarcus Page each finished with eight rebounds for the game high. The teams were nearly even on the glass, with BC taking the slim 38-37 edge.
 
A slow start for both teams turned into a slowed-down game throughout the afternoon. The Tigers' Page hit a pair of free throws with 12:19 remaining in the first half to cut BC's early lead to two, 13-11, but the Tigers went the rest of the half without a field goal and Quin Richardson tallied the team's only additional point—a free throw with under a minute remaining.
 
Despite the Tigers' lack of success from the floor, BC only built an 11-point advantage at the half, 23-12.
 
Campbellsville was just 4-for-25 (16%) in the first 20 minutes, while the Rams hit 9-of-24 (37.5%) attempts.
 
The Tigers hit a shot just over a minute into the second half to end their scoreless stretch from the floor, while BC built its largest lead of the night, 32-17, following a Marion three-pointer.
 
However, Bluefield's offense became stagnant and the Tigers reeled off a 21-8 run and closed the gap to two points. While the Tigers' offense didn't become more efficient, Campbellsville began to hit the offensive boards and put up 18 shots during the nearly 10 minutes compared to just nine for the Rams.
 
A Clement jumper pulled CU within two, 40-38. Nesbit answered with a jumper on the other end while Clement hit two free throws to once again make the gap two, 42-40.
 
The Rams had an answer though and closed the game on a 12-5 run over the final 4:43. A 7-0 spurt from BC started the Rams' closing run, including a 5-for-6 performance at the line and another jumper from Nesbit.
 
Bluefield finished the night hitting 18-for-44 (40.9%) attempts, while Campbellsville was a lackluster 16-for-58 (27.6%) en route to their season-low 45 points.
 
Both teams became somewhat complacent with three-point attempts, CU hitting just 5-for-30 (16.7%) and Bluefield 6-for-20 (30%).
 
Despite the win, BC had already locked up the No. 7 seed in next week's Mid-South Conference tournament.
 
Bluefield will open the conference tournament with the 7:00 p.m. (ET) game on Thursday, March 6, against No. 2 seed Georgetown College. The tournament will be contested on campus of Cumberland University in Lebanon, Tenn. For more information, visit the tournament webpage here: MSC Tournament Information. All times listed on the Cumberland University webpage are local times for the school—which is Central Time Zone.